Fukushima radiation found off Canadian coast

Radiation produced by the tsunami-stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan has been confirmed off the coast of Canada, as the Japanese struggle to contain a number of leaks. The levels, however, are too low to pose a threat, scientists say.

Trace amounts of Cesium-134 and Cesium-137 were discovered in
samples collected on February 19 in the waters near Vancouver
Island in British Columbia, according to Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution scientist Kern Buesseler.

"Radioactivity can be dangerous, and we should be carefully
monitoring the oceans after what is certainly the largest
accidental release of radioactive contaminants to the oceans in
history," a statement from the institute read.

But they have insisted that marine and human life will remain
unscathed, as the levels are extremely low: So low that a dental
X-ray would expose a person to 1,000 times more radiation than
swimming off the coast of Vancouver every day for an entire year.

By contrast, radiation found off the Fukushima coast in the
immediate aftermath of the March 2011 catastrophe showed readings
of a million times more Becquerels per square meter than the 5.8
Becquerels of Cesium-134 and 137 found off Canada.

A similar situation to Woods Hole’s report arose last year, 161
kilometers (100 miles) off the coast of northern California.
Readings did not show an advance toward the rest of the US since
then.

However, scientists need to be on the lookout constantly:
Buesseler adds that “predicting the spread of radiation
becomes more complex the closer it gets to the coast.”

Four years ago saw a catastrophic tsunami and earthquake batter
the Japanese coastline north of Tokyo, setting off a catastrophic
chain of events that involved triple nuclear meltdowns and
displaced over 160,000 residents from the surrounding region. The
world’s worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986, its
consequences threaten to take decades to undo, as not only air
but people’s livelihoods are suffering.

A number of radioactive leaks and other engineering difficulties
have since plagued the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, with the
government and plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company
(TEPCO) struggling to contain the radiation with enormous amounts
of money and technical ingenuity, albeit with varying success.

Management of the situation has likewise been marked by mishaps
and scandalous revelations that have put a serious dent in
TEPCO’s reputation. The plant’s operator announced a week ago its
plans to disclose all data on radiation levels recorded at the
site in response to mounting criticism over its lack of
transparency.

Some situations involved outright negligence and further served
to undermine public trust. In late February the company admitted
to concealing a radioactive leak for 10 months,
citing an ongoing investigation. Fishermen were left in
“shock” as TEPCO, without knowing the true scale of the
problem, chose not to inform anyone. The operator usually relies
on them for permission to dump any radioactive materials in the
water.

TEPCO, who’s been blamed for spending billions of taxpayers’ yen
on failed initiatives to contain the radiation, also recently
announced a plan to build a 400-kilometer chain of sea walls to fend off any
future natural disasters. But that alone will cost a cool $6.8
billion, and there’s no telling what damage it would cause to
marine life.